Dec. 16, 2004 By Daniel E. Dobish Senior Fantasy Writer
The Fantasy Basketball Weekly Planner is the essential guide
to setting your lineup for the upcoming week. Every Friday, we provide
you with top matchups, the latest news and give you the scoop on injured
players.
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Projections are for Dec. 20-26 games.
Team with three games: Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland,
Dallas, Denver, Golden State, Houston, L.A. Lakers, Memphis, Miami,
Minnesota, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Antonio,
Toronto, Washington. Teams with two games: Detroit, Indiana,
L.A. Clippers, Milwaukee, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Portland, Utah.
Team with one game: Atlanta, Orlando, Seattle.
On tap: Week 8 has several games most fans have been waiting for:
Kevin Garnett leads his Timberwolves into Cleveland for a date against
LeBron James and the Cavaliers on Tuesday; Shaquille O'Neal
leads his Miami Heat into Staples on Christmas Day for a battle against
Kobe Bryant and the Lakers; the Pistons and the Pacers also meet on
Christmas for the first time since their brawl on Nov. 19; the Mavericks
and the Nuggets get together for a big Western Conference matchup on
Sunday.
T E A M S T O W A T C H
Shaquille O'Neal and the Heat meet Kobe Bryant and the Lakers on Christmas Day.
(Getty Images)
The games on Christmas Day are usually semi-interesting, but nothing
more than background noise when the family is feeding turkey, goose
and mashed potatoes into their yappers. This year we get Brawlball
II, featuring the Pistons and the Pacers. Several players face legal
troubles stemming from the Nov. 19 brawl that spilled into the crowd
and saw fans charging onto the floor. If that wasn't good enough, we
ratchet up the intensity even further, when Shaq and Kobe renew
acquaintances at Staples. It's unlikely they exchanged Christmas
cards, and it remains to be seen whether they will exchange
pleasantries or ignore each other on the floor. These games will be
playoff intensity and will have televisions tuned in coast to coast
to see what happens. ... Keep an eye on the banged-up New Orleans
Hornets. Junior Harrington has been getting valuable playing
time after Alex Garcia (knee) went down with a season-ending
injury. Harrington has averaged 17.0 PPG over his past three starts,
seeing over 31 minutes per game. Another player who has stepped up
with more opportunity is Dan Dickau. He has bounced around
with four organizations over the past year, but he is finally
starting to see regular minutes because of all the injuries. He has
averaged 15.0 PPG over his past six games while seeing over 24
minutes. Both Dickau and Harrington are worth adding to a Fantasy
roster if you need help at guard. ... The weekly Vince Carter
rumor has him possibly headed to New York with the Rockets getting
involved. Such a deal might net Houston big-time rebounder Kurt
Thomas. Remember, it's only a weak rumor at this point as Carter
has been rumored to nearly every club in the league at this point.
Another team which recently surfaced in the buzz is the Miami Heat.
V.C., Shaq and D-Wade on the same club? That would be silly. You
might want to start printing up those Spurs-Heat NBA Finals tickets
now.
F I V E T E A M S W I T H F A V O R A B L E M A T C H U P S
The following five teams have the best matchups for the upcoming
week. That doesn't necessarily mean they will post the best
Fantasy stats, but if you're looking for a one-week start or are
trying to make a difficult decision between two players to use,
lean toward players from these teams:
Team
MON
TUE
WED
THU
FRI
SAT
SUN
Cleveland Cavaliers (CLE)
--
MIN
@NJ
--
--
--
NO
The Cavaliers have a measuring stick game against the
Timberwolves, which might put their home winning streak in
jeopardy if they can get by Boston on Saturday. The rest of the
way is a breeze.
Houston Rockets (HOU)
TOR
--
CHA
--
--
--
LAC
The Rockets have a favorable slate of games at home, which should
bring solid stat lines for T-Mac and Yao among others.
Milwaukee Bucks (MIL)
--
--
POR
--
--
--
CHI
The Bucks have a pair of winnable games, so consider even their
more marginal players in leagues that average points per game.
Phoenix Suns (PHO)
@DEN
--
--
MEM
--
--
TOR
It doesn't seem to matter who the Suns are playing these days,
they are a bullet train running downhill right now.
Portland Trailblazers (POR)
@CHI
--
@MIL
--
--
--
--
The Blazers have not been the best team on the road, posting a 3-8
record through Thursday's games. But this schedule should help
improve that rather quickly.
F I V E T E A M S W I T H P O O R M A T C H U P S
The following five teams have the worst matchups for the upcoming
week. That doesn't necessarily mean you should reserve every
player from these teams, but try to avoid less-heralded performers
from these squads if you have an alternative on your roster:
Team
MON
TUE
WED
THU
FRI
SAT
SUN
Atlanta Hawks (ATL)
--
--
DAL
--
--
--
--
The Hawks have been terrible most nights. Luckily for their fans,
they will face only one loss this week.
Denver Nuggets (DEN)
PHO
--
@SEA
--
--
--
DAL
The Nuggets face a brutal schedule against two of the hottest
teams in the NBA and the angry Mavericks.
New Orleans Hornets (NO)
--
@LAC
@LAL
--
--
--
@CLE
The awful Hornets take a swing through Southern California before
ending up in Cleveland. Brutal schedule for the worst team in the
NBA.
Orlando Magic (ORL)
--
--
SA
--
--
--
--
The Magic play host to the Spurs on Wednesday for their only
matchup of the week.
Seattle Supersonics (SEA)
--
--
DEN
--
--
--
--
The only thing that can stop the red-hot Supersonics from winning
more than one game in a week is the NBA schedule maker.
J U M P S H O T S
Charlotte's Emeka Okafor has 11 consecutive double-doubles.
He has 17.6 PPG and 12.8 RPG during the impressive stretch. For
those who were ready for the coronation of Dwight Howard as
the rookie of the year need to remember the award is passed out
during the summer, not November or December. ... San Antonio's
Tim Duncan has been a swat machine over the past seven games. He
has 27 blocks during the stretch, which is best in the NBA.
Surprising enough, Indiana's David Harrison has 16 blocks
over the past five games for second place. ... The Washington
Wizards have been on a major thievery roll recently. Larry Hughes
has 25 steals in seven games to lead the NBA over the past 14 days.
Gilbert Arenas is third in the league over the period with 20.
